Category Archives: Credit Cards

by Janna Herron, Bankrate.com
If your credit has suffered in the rough economy, you may be able to repair it more quickly than you think. And if you’re in the midst of trouble, you can minimize the damage.

It should come as no surprise that more consumers filed for bankruptcy or lost their homes in the past three years. Many are in line for a similar fate as the economy flirts with a double-dip recession. At the end of it all, consumers are left staring at what remains of their once-great credit scores and wondering when they can get credit again.
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By Cameron Huddleston, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine
Awareness and smart planning will help you avoid these unnecessary charges (and save your money for things you can’t get for free, or at least for less).

It’s easy to overlook fees when they’re just a couple of bucks. But even the small ones quickly add up. However, most of the time you can avoid being nickel and dimed. With the help of BillShrink — a free cost-savings site — we created a list of 10 fees you can escape.
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Paying off your card balance every month is fine, but there are other steps you can take to get a higher credit rating
When it comes to cultivating a credit score, you’ve probably got the good-citizen routine down cold: You pay on time, try to wipe out the entire balance every month and never close too many accounts at once.

Beyond the basics, though, many consumers are still in the dark about what makes their credit scores go up and down.
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By TARA SIEGEL BERNARD
Millions of consumers have fallen out of favor with the credit scoring gods.
Some lost their jobs or were just overwhelmed by mounting debt. Others got caught up in the real estate bubble or had major medical bills. Whatever the reason, the rising number of foreclosures, short sales, late credit card payments and the ultimate credit sin — bankruptcies — have left black marks on credit reports most everywhere.
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By ERIC DASH/ Reprinted the NY Times

First came the mortgage crisis. Now comes the credit card crisis.

After years of flooding Americans with credit card offers and sky-high credit lines, lenders are sharply curtailing both, just as an eroding economy squeezes consumers.
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